South Korean wireless giant SK Telecom has announced that its SK Planet subsidiary has acquired ShopKick, according to The Wall Street Journal. Macy's recently announced that it was expanding its use of ShopKick to nearly 800 stores. ShopKick has more than eight million users.

eBay Takes Its First Steps Toward Virtual Currency - Mashable - "Starting on Feb. 10, the UK section of the online marketplace will open a "virtual currency" category within its classified ads for the listing of Bitcoin, as well as its various offshoots..."

Payoneer® Partners with Quantium Solutions Inc. of Japan - "Payoneer announced today it has signed a partnership with Quantium Solutions Inc. of Japan, a leading international logistics and fulfillment services company wholly owned by Singapore Post Ltd to provide global cross-border payment solutions for Quantium’s international e-commerce and mail-order business operators."

How an American Express Executive Drives Growth - HBR Blog Network - "As group president of enterprise growth at American Express, Dan Schulman is trying to expand the brand to serve non-affluent customers who he says are paying too much for existing financial services."

How bitcoin makes transactions cheaper - Medium (John Henderson) - "Bitcoin’s fundamental innovation is to obviate the need for a 3rd party to be involved in the transaction. It allows you to securely and anonymously transfer money to anyone, anywhere in the world."

Bitcoin — boom or bubble? - Washington Post (Robert Samuelson) - "Ours is an era when technologists are leading us in directions that neither they nor we fully understand. That’s why it’s so hard to know whether Bitcoin represents constructive innovation — or just another old-fashioned swindle."

Judges thrust into debit-card war - The Hill - "Representatives from the financial industry made their case Friday that the original ruling must be tossed, allowing the Fed to put in place higher caps."

McDonald’s Launches McD App for Smartphones Throughout Northern Nevada Area - "McD App utilizes location-based services to provide consumers with deals and offers accessible direct from their mobile device and has the ability to tailor future offers and deals based on a user’s preferences and purchasing behaviors."

Updates from Glenbrook:

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Over on Payments Views, our sister blog, Glenbrook has posted an excerpt from its South Korea eCommerce Market Analysis report that describes how the bill-to-mobile phenomenon works in South Korea. Many consider South Korea the cradle of mobile billing and its interesting how the payment method has evolved over time.

Suki Kim writes an op-ed for the New York Times titled "Notes From Another Credit Card Crisis" that looks at the experience of South Korea - where credit card debt exploded in the early years of this decade.